Through Hazel Eyes
by FictionLash
Summary: There's something about Anne Shirley that makes Gilbert want to smile. Maybe it's her misadventures, or her imagination, or her red hair, but it's probably fact that he's in love with her. A story based on both movies and books- through Gilbert's eyes. Updated daily.
1. Chapter 1

_Click_.

Gilbert flinched at the sound of the door being opened and withdrew back into the cellar. His face was covered in cookie crumble- his father's illegal cookie crumbles, mind you- and listened to the two ladies descending down the steps.

"-never goes to to town this time of the year, and he wasn't going fast enough to be fetching for a doctor," an elderly lady said. Gilbert recognized the belonger of the statement to be Mrs. Rachel Lynde. If the voice hadn't given it away, the haughty tone would have done it. Gilbert considered his mother to be reasonably kind, and she listened to Rachel's gossip all the time. His reasoning was if his mother had no problems with it, Gilbert could certainly listen to the news. (This was just his excuse for eavesdropping in on his neighbors.)

"So I ran over to Marilla's today to ask her what his business was. Then she informed me in a far too calm voice that she and Matthew had decided to adopt a little orphan boy to help out with the chores. Have you ever heard of the like? I told her I wished she had consulted me first, but she was adamant in her decision. So I marched off. I knew they'd regret it first night that boy came."

"So?" Gilbert's mother sounded like she was being kept in suspense." Did they get the boy? I wouldn't mind taking in an orphan, but a child I've never met? Not me!"

"Today I went over to Green Gales to see if I could welcome the child. I found out they got an orphan, but by some unfortunate mistake, it certainly isn't any boy!" She waited for Lauren's startled gasp, and it came. "First time I saw the child I spoke my mind on what I saw. You know how I am. Obviously the child- Anne's her name- cares far to much for her looks. I told her her hair was as red as carrots, and she just flew at me in such a rage! She said I was fat and ugly and an old gossip!"

Gilbert had to desperately stifle a laugh. This Anne was right-on (though of course he'd never say that to his mother).

"So of course they'll send her back, right?"

"No! Marilla said she'd put it on trial- knowing Marilla I'd say Anne's temper will get the best of her. Well, that was before, anyways. Right after Anne ran out after saying such vulgar things, Marilla turned right around and defended her temper, saying I had no right to twit her about her looks."

"Say, Rachel, I can't seem to find those peaches. Maybe they're on the other side." Lauren said.

Gilbert turned his head and stifled a groan. Right next to him at eye level sat seven shining glass jars of spiced peaches. He shrank down a little farther.

"Well, I intend on boycotting my trips to Green Gables until I've heard an apology." Rachel smoothed out her skirt pompously. "I won't be treated in such a fashion!"

From what Gilbert had overheard, Anne sounded pretty stubborn. All the girls he had known would, in Anne's predicament, buckle under the pressure and cry. Anne sounded different. She could probably keep a grudge for a long time.

Little did Gilbert know how long.


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok, I lied. Maybe it's not every day. But I work on it daily. I only get 20 minutes of computer time a day, so I've got 27 pages of notebook paper -college ruled-of stuff for this story. Thank you for reading it and it really brightens my day when you review- so do!**

Gilbert entered the familiar schoolhouse for the first time in three years. He smiled to himself thinking of all the havoc hes was sure to cause. Trouble making was a profession he excelled at, and it made him smile to see his classmates laugh at- well, maybe anything.

The new schoolmaster, Mr. Phillips (or rather new to Gilbert) looked like a duck. Charlie Sloane whispered to him that he was sweet on Prissy Andrews, who was a delicate creature at the age of sixteen. She had always been a teacher's pet.

Gilbert shared a seat with Charlie. Not five minutes had passed before Gilbert began to crack a joke about Mr. Phillips, but he faltered when a flash of bright red danced through the corner of his gaze. Somehow, he immediately knew it was the Anne who had dared stand up to Mrs. Lynde. he examined her more closely. She had a few freckles across her nose, several on her arms and two on the ear he could see. Her eyes were gray and stormy and- gosh almighty, they were big! Of course, there was her hair- the second Gilbert saw it, he thought of carrots, even without Mrs. Lynde's help. It was undeniably red and probably wouldn't ever turn any other shade.

He suddenly realized Anne probably didn't know he existed, much less he was staring at her. This was an entirely new experience for him. She _should _look at him, this little redhead girl with eyes that weren't like the eyes of any other girl in Avonlea.

Diana Barry whispered to Anne's ear. The redhead turned her head slightly towards Gilbert so she was looking at him. On a sudden impulse he winked at her. (Once again, he did not do this often.)

Her expression froze. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and whispered to Diana. Gilbert, however, heard every word.

"I think your Gilbert_ is _handsome," she confided to her friend, (Gilbert smiled smugly at this) "but I think he's very bold. It isn't good manners to wink at a strange girl."

_Mixed reception._

Hopefully, she didn't base her entire judgement on him by the wink. He hadn't even spoken to her yet, and he had a _lot_ to say.

Mr. Phillips was in the back with Prissy. It was the perfect time for the first prank of the school year. Slipping out a long, heavy pin from his pocket and stealthily pinned Ruby Gillis' braid to her chair. Presently she stood to take her sums to the master and fell back into a her chair with a little shriek. Gilbert reached over and took it back out to stare intently at his book.

"Ruby, would you please stop disturbing my class?" Mr. Phillips snapped. When he broke his intimidating gaze she began to cry. Gilbert would have felt bad if she hadn't been known to cry every day.

Gilbert wasn't the only one wanting Anne's attention. Charlie leaned over and shoved his pet mouse two inches from her freckled face."Oh!" she gasped. Laughing, Charlie retreated Oscar back but stopped when he saw Anne's look of freezing scorn. It was almost school marmish, but still enough to make Gilbert want to sit up straight and say "Yes, ma'am." And she wasn't even looking at him!

He made up his mind right then and there Anne would be his best friend, more than Charlie or Fred. They would be inseparable. The girls would be insanely jealous of their closeness. But first, he had to get her to notice him.

"Carrots!" He hissed as he pulled her braid. "Hey, Carrots! _Carrots! **Carrots!"**_

She sprung up and looked at him with a vengeance!

"You mean, hateful boy!" Anne roared. "How dare you!?"

And then- BREAK- she brought his slate down on his head. Owww! was his first thought. His second thought was an urge, the urge to apologize to her. He had momentarily forgotten how sensitive she was about her looks, and had ignored the incident between her and Mrs. Lynde. How could he? Shame went through him, feeling like the opposite of what he had hoped.

Anne froze in shock at herself. Eyes even wider, she stiffly turned to face the blackboard as Mr. Phillips swelled indignantly.

"Anne Shirley!" He strode from the back of the classroom." "What is the meaning of this?"

Gilbert tried to sound respectful. "It was my fault, sir. I was teasing her."

"Well then," the master sneered, "flirt with the girls _after_ class, Mr. Blythe. Then again, your flirting seems to be in vain this once."

The young boy wished he could strangle the schoolmaster right then. His face was red.

Next, Mr. Phillips turned to Anne, who was still shell shocked. "I will not tolerate that sort of behavior in my class! And I will have order if I have to whip you all!" He addressed the last part to the rest of Avonlea school, who were thoroughly enjoying the scene and laughing at the pairs' expense.

The absolute _duck _walked Anne to the black board. "Ann Shirley," he narrated as he wrote, "has a very...bad...temper." He slammed the slender chalk down. "And she must learn to control it! you will write this one hundred times before leaving school today," he promised. The master left her standing there and resumed his lessons with Prissy.

Anne didn't cry or hang her head. Gilbert realized she was trying to salvage the bits of pride left in her. She stuck her chin in the air and, when she was finished writing, stared defiantly at one spot on the wall.

Gilbert was impressed. But when Mr. Phillips wasn't looking, she added an "e" to his original sentence, which he had spelled "Ann."


	3. Chapter 3

**Thankfully, I had the opportunity to update again today. Lilies of Avonlea, I will be doing both movie-verse (I had to ask my mother what the term meant) and... book-verse (is that a term)? And, thank you for your reviews! I have a question- how many hours do you spend on Fanfiction a day? I want to know if I'm normal or not! :)**

When school was out, Gilbert stood by the door to wait for Anne. He didn't have to wait long. He was standing there not thirty seconds before Anne walked out, red head held high and Diana tagging along.

"I'm sorry I made fun of your hair," he whispered sincerely, trying to catch up with her. "Don't be mad at me for keeps, now."

He looked at her hopefully. She just couldn't stay mad at him! Anyways, no girl ever could resist his-

She swept by disdainfully without a sign of seeing or hearing him -except the quickening of her pace.

_...apologies. _Then again, Gilbert had never even tried to apologize to a girl before, so he wouldn't know. Obviously he had overestimated his charm, because this Anne, the only girl he really wanted to notice him, wouldn't give him the time of day.

Diana gaped at Anne. "Oh, Anne! How could you?" She sounded horrified. "He calls me crowhead all the time, and he teases all the girls..."

Gilbert didn't get to hear the rest, for Josie Pye was attempting to get his attention, as she always did. "Oh, Gilbert, just ignore her. She's not worth _your_ time," Josie simpered. "Anne Shirley is a brainless little orphan girl who wouldn't recognize teasing for fun if her life depended on it."

She looked at him expectantly, waiting for a response.

Gilbert's eyes swept her disgustedly. Anne was ten times the girl in front of him. Josie was- well, a brat, and a flirt. He was her main crush ever since they had started school. Falling over him all the time, she lashed out at anyone female who was on friendly terms with Gilbert. Jealousy was her motive for everything. She may imagine that Gilbert didn't see her barely veiled comments to everyone, but true personality is hard to hide. At times, he was sorry she was a girl. Otherwise he would hit her.

Without a word, he brushed by her and began the walk home. He barley heard her squawk of indignation.

Jennifer Blythe found her son laying on his bed holding his cap on his chest and with a glazed expression.

"It's dinner time, Gilbert," she said as gently as she could.

"What are we having?"

"Brisket and cooked carrots."

He groaned and flopped over. "Great. I don't want any dinner."

She sat on his bed. "What's wrong with you? Are you sick?"

There was a long pause. "Yes. No. Of sorts."

His mother laughed. "What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

He sat up and glared at her. "It means I'm feeling sick but I'm not!" When she gave Gilbert a questioning glance, he just sighed.

"Ohhh." She said knowingly. "Okay. Who's the lucky girl?

"MOTHER!" His faced turned scarlet.

She laughed again. "No, I'm being serious. You look exactly like Walter did when he found out Catherine Miller didn't like him. He came home and looked like he ate a poisoned apple."

He sighed, a long huff of breath which his mother took as a sign of surrender. "There's a new girl at school. She wouldn't look at me, so I called her "Carrots." She didn't take it the way she was supposed to... actually, she broke her slate over my head. Now she's really mad at me. Even when I apologized, she wouldn't look at me."

Mrs. Blythe slowly nodded. "This is Anne Shirley.

He grimaced. "...Yeah."

She laughed a very un-motherly laugh to herself. "The girl Marilla Cuthbert adopted?"

"Yeah. I guess so."

She laughed that laugh again and shook her head. "Marilla Cuthbert indeed. Well, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?"

He looked at her strangely.

"Never mind." She waved her hand away, changing the subject. "What a girl likes is a boy who apologizes. With romance. And... maybe an 'I'm Sorry' gift. From what I've heard, this Anne if very sensitive about her looks. Flatter her! Tell her you like her hair! And for gosh's sake, Gilbert, remember: a girl is not attracted by a boy who teases her!"

He smiled faintly. "Alright. I'll come to dinner."

"I knew you would." She walked out. On the way down the stairs, he heard her chuckle. "Marilla Cuthbert!"

He knew just what to get her. The cent piece in his pocket had been burning a hole, and Lawson's General Store was selling candy hearts with messages etched into them. Every girl likes sugar. Then again, Anne wasn't any other girl... but still!

He went to dinner smiling, because he knew the next day his romantic gesture would dissolve any grudge Anne had against him.


	4. Chapter 4

**I was lucky enough to get to post TWO chapters today! Reviews make me smile, and I would love to have my cheeks hurt tomorrow!**

On the way to school with Charlie the next day, they ran in to Anne and Diana. As expected, Anne ignored Gilbert's presence.

"Hello, Charlie!" she greeted warmly. Gilbert got the feeling she was purposefully being extra-nice to Charlie to show Gilbert just how angry she was at him.

"Um...Hi-hi, Anne," he gulped. "Diana," he acknowledged. Gilbert hid a smile. He knew Charlie had taken a fancy to Anne, and he was always stutering over his own tongue around girls. Combine the two, and- well, let's just say Charlie was not to be held accountable for anything he said or did in their presence.

"Do-you-want-to-walk-with-us?" Charlie ran through the sentence with considerable force. Gilbert gaped at him. The girls would probably never realize how much courage that one question took. _He must really like Anne,_ Gilbert thought with a wry smile.

"Yes." Diana told him cheerfully. Anne glared at her pointedly. "What?" The raven-haired girl asked defensively. Gilbert saw Anne motion her head towards him and felt a little drop in his chest at her reluctance to walk with him. The two had a little argument without words; in the e!nd, Diana won.

"Alright," Anne sniffed haughtily, "I shall walk with you Charlie, _and your companion, _but only because my bosom friend wants me to and I would do anything for her." Gilbert just looked at her and raised his eyebrows. Anne saw it, he _knew _she did, but she didn't give any sign she had. But he wasn't worried about it. He could stand a few more hours of ignorance until she received his gift, which was nestled deep into his lunch pail. Walking with Anne would give him a chance to give it to her.

Anne chattered all the way, and poor Charlie couldn't get a word in edgewise. She paused for a split second every once in a while to let Diana comment on something (usually a "yes" or a "no"), and Charlie sometimes hastily added his input. When Gilbert tried to say something to her, she breezed on with her thoughts in the middle of his sentence. When this happened, Diana would give him an apologetic glance. In response, he would shrug his shoulders.

Suddenly, Anne stopped talking and walking. Being in the lead, this created a domino effect and stopped the others. Gilbert started to ask what was wrong when followed her gaze and saw the problem.

In the middle of their path, the Pye boys- who were the meanest, roughest boys in Avonlea- stood gathered in a circle, eating walnuts.

"Oh, Anne..." Diana whimpered. "What are you going to do?"

Gilbert saw the chance to be a knight in shining armor and was about to step into the circle to diffuse any hostility they might have. Just as he was about to do so, Anne haughtily started through the circle like there was nobody there. However, she had not made it three steps before they stared to throw walnuts at her!

She ducked her head from the flying missiles for a moment. Then she stomped her foot and screamed, "Jacob Pye, how _dare_ you throw things at girls-" Gilbert got a strong sense of deja vu- " and your father would be ashamed of you!"

And with that, Jacob (the ringleader) broke free of the circle with Anne hot on his heels. Charlie, Diana, and Gilbert followed her- for backup or to hold her back, Gilbert didn't know. They chased him through the woods and over Mr. Sadler's pasture fences. Five minutes after climbing over his gates, they realized they had lost Anne!

Diana immediately burst into tears. Gilbert attempted to calm her down and relieve her fears. "Anne's probably gone back to the schoolhouse," he said reasonably. "That'd be like her, wouldn't it? She'd do it to show Jacob he wasn't worth her time."

She sniffed. "Yes. She would. Oh, but I'm so worried about her!" They began the now short walk to the schoolhouse.

To the group's utter dismay, yes, they found Anne, but she was standing like a guilty prisoner at the side of Mr. Sadler!

"You are the worst schoolteacher this school has _ever_ known!" the farmer was snarling in his heavy Scottish accent. "You should spend less time mooning after Prissy Andrews and spend more time keeping your students from chasing each other in my fields!" Breathing heavily, he resumed his rigid posture. "Good day, Mr Phillips!"

Gilbert, Diana, and Charlie slipped guiltily into their desks. Mr. Phillips didn't seem to notice. Nostrils flaring, he slowly turned to Anne, who was nervously anticipating her punishment.

"Since you seem to enjoy the boy's company so much, we will indulge you." A malicious smile spread over his face. "Take your seat next to Gilbert Blythe."

She went very white, down to her lips.

"Did you hear me, Miss Shirley?" He demanded.

"Yes, sir," she murmured, "But I didn't suppose you meant it."

"I assure you I meant it. Take your seat."

Slowly she walked down the aisle, eyes wide. Charlie hastily sprang aside for Anne and slid next to Diana.

Gilbert couldn't deny he was ecstatic about the fact she was sitting thisclose from him. However, Anne was less than happy- that much was obvious from the way she buried her head in her hands.

When it came time to do the sums, Gilbert slipped the little candy heart with the inscription "You Are Sweet" into the curve of her arm.

His heart pounded in anticipation as she glanced down at the heart for a split second. He waited for an acknowledging glance or some kind of confirmation of forgiveness. However, without even looking up, she dropped the heart to the floor underneath he boot and crushed it to powder.

Gilbert simply gaped at her. One thing was for sure- Anne Shirley was completely different from any other girl.

And Gilbert was dead gone on her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Once again, thank you so much for your reviews! I love it when you guys do that. I have been reading Lilies of Avonlea's stories, and if you haven't already I suggest you do if you are an Anne Fan. I was getting frustrated with the whole "Anne hates Gilbert" banter so I'm going to speed things up a bit. But I'm hoping it's just as good as the original storyline. Tell me what you think, and_ don't skip over the last sentence. This is crucial!_**

And so began a fierce rivalry between Anne and Gilbert. It was mostly one-sided, with Anne convinced losing to Gilbert over anything would be a lifelong humiliation. Gilbert accepted it almost humorously, and he didn't mind losing. But he always kept hopes of reconciliation in his back pocket. But, he thought wryly, attention is attention.

There was a small period in time- perhaps three days at the most- when Anne was missing from school. These were the days right after she had been reassigned a seat with Gilbert. Each day would seem gloomy to everyone without the tinge of brightness sitting in the far left of the schoolhouse. It was Ruby Gillis' reason for tears, and Gilbert had to admit he missed her too. They were worried she might be ill until Diana sadly informed them Anne would not be coming back to school. Gilbert thought she said it with an accusing glare at him.

Of course he knew the reason. Anne would rather stay home than sit next to him. The truth was hard, obvious, and cold. But rather than give up, he was even more determined for forgiveness. Each day he'd go home and hold a shard of slate he had picked up on that fateful day. It made him feel slightly better, for reasons unknown. But when he realized the extent of Anne's animosity, Gilbert felt as if she had broken his heart along with her slate.

And then, through Diana, he heard that she and her "bosom friend" would never be allowed to see each other again. He was positively sure of Anne's innocence on setting Diana drunk. Gilbert though Mrs. Barry was biased in her analysis of Anne's character because of her prejudice against orphans.

But he couldn't deny the brief jolt of satisfaction he felt when he heard this. Now, the only place Anne could see her friend was at school- and Anne loved her friend more than her grudges. That meant Anne would come back!

Sure enough, only three days had passed when she slid into the seat next to Gilbert, slightly out of breath. Her cheeks were red from the cold, and her hair was cut short!

"Anne," Josie hissed meanly from across their desk. "You cut your hair, I see. You'd do anything to get red of that bright, ugly red, wouldn't you? Too bad. It didn't help. Your hair's even _more_ red!"

Gilbert saw Anne's jaw clench, but she never looked away from her book. He shot Josie a reprimanding glare, and she looked taken aback.

"Alright, class." Mr. Phillips cleared his throat at the head of the schoolhouse. "Please put away your history textbooks. We will now begin our spelling bee."

The students did so. "Miss Andrews." Prissy stood up, smiling shyly. "Would you please spell the word 'chrysanthemum?'"

"Um... c-h-r-i, wait- no, e...s-a-n..t-h-u...M-U-M!" Poor Prissy's face was bright red with embarrassment.

The masters encouraging smile faltered for a moment, then resumed full force. "Now that we have mastered your math skills, perhaps we will work on your spelling." The smile dissipated as he looked at the next person in the order. "Gilbert?" he said, almost sarcastically.

Gilbert stood up almost lazily. "C-H-R-Y-S-A-N-T-H-A-M-U-M." He spelled confidently.

Mr. Phillips pursed his duck like lips. "...Anne?" Darn it! He was sure he had it right!

She stood haughtily. "C-H-R-Y-S-A-N-T-H-**E-** Anne shot him a superior glance. "-M-U-M."

The master rolled his eyes. "Correct." He almost mumbled.

In the end, Anne won the spelling contest. Gilbert didn't mind. It was almost worth losing to see the happy expression on her face as she was announced winner. But still- he had been so sure it was spelled with an "a"! A small smile played out on his face as he thought about it. Anne with and "e", chrysanthemum with an "e". Yes, he would remember the word with that aid from now on and he was sure if Anne ever found out, she would be furious. This was so funny he burst out in giggles.

"What's so funny?" Josie asked loudly. Gilbert rolled his eyes.

"Nothing." He said shortly, irritated she had interrupted his fantasies _yet again_.

"Well, it's awf'ly strange for you to be laughing to yourself." She replied crossly. Gilbert could tell she didn't believe him. "Come on. Walk me home."

He gave a great sigh as Josie grabbed his arm and began chattering as she dragged him down the road.

"And then she told me her father was so mad at Mr. Phillips that he was considering moving so she could change schools, but she just cried as much as possible- her father falls for it every time- and he relented. But I think she just wanted to stay because she likes..."

Gilbert remembered Anne's chatter earlier in the morning about how she believed there was a little good in everyone, and mentally compared the difference between her and Josie. All the latter ever did was talk about other people and their faults. Anne, if she ever talked about others, mentioned things she liked about them. _I am so sick of Josie Pye, _Gilbert thoght wearily.

"I have a question, Miss Genius!" Gilbert's companion called out snidley. " How do you spell 'freckles'?"

"How do you spell 'stupid'?" Diana retorted back as she stuck her tongue out. She jumped at every chance to defend Anne since the whole "carrots" incident.

"Anne!" He called out. He jogged to catch up with her and Diana. "Congratulations on the spelling bee." Gilbert said loudly.

The redhead froze. "Thank you, Mr. Blythe." She said coldly. "In the future, please remember not to act so confident in your skills, whether it be scholastic or worldly."

He felt shocked for a moment. "Well, at least you're talking to me now," he said, without having to fake the smile on his face. _She was talking to him!_

"I would be rude of me to ignore a compliment, whether the giver meant it or not. And I, at least, am not a rude person- unlike some people." She glared pointedly at both Gilbert and Josie.

Josie snatched up Gilbert's arm and marched the opposite way of the girls. Steam was billowing out of her pink ears and her mouth was curdled up. "They...of ALL the nasty- snobbish...hooty-"

"Josie!" Gilbert yelled.

"What!?"

"Just stop! Stop being a brat for once in your life and accept her- accept them! Just because I want to talk to a girl besides you doesn't mean you have to go into hostility and spread animosity everywhere you step! Anne Shirley may not be the prettiest girl in Canada but she sure is the smartest!"

Gilbert stormed off down the path. "And that's better than being pretty!" He yelled over his shoulder. If he hadn't looked back to see Josie gape at him, he might not have seen Anne Shirley beaming after him as if he had just given her the world.


End file.
